Traffic signal light



Oct. 4, 1932. J. KELLER TRAFFIC SIGNAL LIGHT Filed March 7, 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet Ill-III! J. KELLER Oct. 4, 1932.

TRAFFIC S IGNAL LIGHT 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 7, 1929 3 140m 11 oz J. [E l/er MIA Patented Oct. 4, 1932 STATES JEREMIAH KELLER, OF CANTON, OHIO TRAFFIC SIGNAL LIGHT Application .filed March 7,

The invention relates to signal lights such as are used at street intersections for directing traific and more particularly to such a signal provided with a single lamp for give ing the red, green and amber signals upon the four sides of the device. 7

The object of the improvement is to pro vide a signal light comprising a housing or casing within which is located a single lamp, a clear transparent lens being located in each side of the casing in such position that the light from the lamp will simultaneously shine through all four of the lenses; an oscillating frame being mounted within the housing between the lamp and the lenses and carrying a plurality of red, green and amber colored transparent panels, means, such as solenoids, being provided for oscillating the frame at intervals and bringing it to a stop 23 with difierent ones of the colored glass panels side of the parts shown in Fig. 3;

Fig. 5, a detail plan section on theline 5-5, Fig. 4;

Fig. 6, a wiring diagram of the improved signal light, and I Fig. 7, a framentary bottom plan view of the signal light.

Similar numerals refer to similar parts throughout the drawings. I

The signal maybe mounted Within a housing shown generally at 10 which may be sub,-

stantially rectangular in shape and provided at its upper end with ears 11 or the like for suspending the same from a post or other support.

For the purpose of permittinga circula- 1929. Serial No. 345,053.

tion of air within the casing, in order to pre vent moisture from accumulating therein, apertures 12 may be formed in the dome portion 13 at the top of the casing, these apertures being preferably covered as by the hood 6!! 14 to prevent rain or snow from being admitted therethrough to the interior of the. casing.

Each of the four sides of the casing may be provided with an integral visor 15, a clear 6.0. transparent lens 16 being mounted within each visor.

An opening 17 is formed in each side of the oasing,'registering with the adjacent lens and in position to permit the light from the lamp 18 to shine therethrough and to be visible simultaneously through each of the four lenses.

The lamp is carried by the cup-shaped support 19 mounted upon the removable bottom plate 20 having a flange 21 for detachable engagement with the lugs 22 of the casing.

A bell 28 is carried by the bottom plate 20, being preferably formed integral there with and the oscillating frame, shown generally at 24, is pivotally mounted upon the bell as by the flange 25 .and pin 26 located ihelrethrough and through the boss 27 of the The bell 23 is provided on each ofits four sides with openings 28 registering with the openings 17 of the casing or housing 10. Preferably between these openings the bell may be provided with the angular pockets -29 through which the wires as indicated at 30 may be located.

I The oscillating framecarries a plurality of colored transparent panels 31 preferably arranged as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. With such an arrangement, two oppositely disposed panels, as shown at B may be red and the two oppositely disposed panels at right angles thereto as shown at G may be green. the four intervening panels as indicated at A 5 being amber.

An upright-32 is fixed upon the top of the bell 23 at one side thereof and provided with a horizontal arm 33 having a bearing 34: thereon, an overhanging arm 35 being formed 1G0 upon the bearing and having a depending bearing portion 36 at its end.

A rocker shaft 37 is journaled in the bear- 6 ing 34 and provided with pintles journaled in the upright32 and bearing 36 as indi cated at 38. A post 39 is fixed upon the flange 25 of the oscillating frame and journaled at its upper end upon the arm 33 as indicated at 40.

A depending rocker arm 41 is carried by the rocker arm 37 and may be provided with a weight 42 for normally urging the same into vertical position. This rocker arm extends through an elongated slot 43 formed in the flange 44 of the angle member 45 which is fixed upon the top of the oscillating frame.

In addition to the'weight 42 a coil spring 46 is preferably provided, being connected at oppositeends to the arm 33 and angle member 45 as by the screws 47 and 48 respectively, in order to normally urge the oscillating frameto the neutral position with the amber panels registering with the four lenses.

Forthe purpose of oscillating the frame whereby the light from the lamp 18 will simultaneously shine through the four amher panels, giving an amber light through each. of the four lenses.

The plate 54, preferably of brass, may be fixed upon the top of the bell 23, which together with the other parts of the apparatus may preferably be formed of aluminum.

This plate is provided with a hollow boss closed at its upper end, extended'upward into the coil of each solenoid and with a lower hollow boss 56 alined therewith.

A lower armature 57 is slidably mounted within the bosses at each end of the plate 54 and each of these armatures is provided with aradial pin 58 extended through the radial slot 59 in the plate 54 and lower boss thereon and through a similar slot 60 in thebell 23.

A cam track 61, higher at its central portion and tapered toward each end, and of'a length to extend substantially from one of the radial pins 58 to the other, is fixed upon the oscillating frame 24. 7

An insulation block 62 may be carried by the bottom plate 20 and provided with a plurality of binding posts for making electrical connections from the outside to the lamp and solenoids.

The wiring diagram shown in Fig. 6 illustrates the manner in which the wires may be arranged. A wire 63 leads from the outside to a binding post 64 upon the block 62 and then to one side of the lamp 18, the wire 65 leading from the other side of the lamp, through the binding post 66, upon theblocl: 62150 the outside. 1

This completes a circuit to the lamp which is normally closed at all times during the operation of the signal so that the lamp may be kept continuously lighted.

It should be understood that a timer is provided atsome distant point for controlling the circuit to the solenoids, which timer may beof a construction such as disclosed in my copending application for timer for traffic signal, Serial No. 348,725, filed March 21, 1929.

Wires 67 and 68, both from the same side When the solenoid 49 is energized, the corresponding armatures 53 and 57 are pulled downward and upward respectively. This causes arocking of the shaft 35, swinging the rocker arm 41 thereon and through the slotted angle member 45, the oscillating frame is turned upon its axis to bring the two red panels intoregister with the two oppositely disposed lenses 16 while the green panels are brought into registration with the other two lenses.

As the lower armature 57 is pulled up, the pin 58 thereof will pass onto the top of the cam track 61 and as the oscillating frame comes to rest in the position above described, the pin will be over the high center portion of the track.

When the other solenoid is energized, the armaturesthereof will be operated in the same manner, rocking the rocker shaft and'arm 41 in'the opposite direction and oscillating the frame 24 until the positions of the red and green panels are reversed from that above described.

During the normal operation of the signal, in order to. display the amber light for a period of time between the red and the green of each side, both solenoids are ole-energized for the desired length of time. This permits the weight 42 and spring 46 to oscillate the frame to the neutral position, shown in the drawings, the pin 58 of the armature'57, which has been raised just previously, riding off of the end of the track61 as the frame comes to rest at the neutral or amber position while the other pin 58 acts as a stop for the adjacent end of the track 61, holding the frame in this position until one or the other of the solenoids is again energized.

If it is desired to cut out the amber signal entirely between the red and green signals on each side of the device, the timer may be so adjusted that both of the solenoids 49 and 50 will be energized momentarily, thus hav ing no effect upon the upper armatures 53, and at the same time holding the lower armatures 57 in a raised position so that the oscillating frame 24 will be free to swing in the necessary direction; whereupon the frame 24 will swing to change the signal from red to green or vice versa, on each side, without stopping at mid-swing to show the amber signal between the red and green, without any period when both solenoids are de-energized, the signal thus going from red to green and vice versa on each side.

The clear transparent lenses 16 are mounted in each visor 15 by providing a receiving flange 75 and a plurality of ears 7 6 which are preferably spaced 120 apart as shown in Figure 1. Sufficient peripheral clearance is provided in the annular groove 77 between the ears 76 and the flange 75 to permit the lens 16 to be slipped under one ear 76, into the groove 77 on the diametrically opposite side, and under the remaining two ears 76. A spring wire 78 is then inserted under the ears 76 pressing against the peripheral flange 79 of the lens 16 to hold the same securely against the flange 75. Thus the lenses may be removed and replaced from the outside of the signal without the use of screws and the particular means of mounting is unaffected by atmospheric and weather conditions.

The removable bottom plate 20 may be pro vided with a peripheral flange 21 having spaced out-out portions 81 through which the hook lugs 22 may pass when it is desired to replace or remove the bottom plate from the signal. In placing the bottom plate upon the signal, the cut-out portions 81 are placed. adjacent the lugs 22, the plate is then slipped upward within the housing 10 after which the plate will be rotated in the direction shown by the arrow in Fig. 7 until the lugs 82 strike against the lugs 22. Thus, the bottom plate on which the mechanism is mounted may be inserted into or removed from the housing and may be securely attached to the housing without the use of screws, and the means by which such attachment or disengagement and clamping is accomplished is unaffected by weather conditions.

Similarly, the lamp support 19 may be en gaged by and clamped to the bottom plate 20 by providing a peripheral flange 85 on the support 19 having cut-out portions 86 arranged to register with lugs 87 carried by the bottom plate 20. After the support 19 is T engaged by the lugs 87 and turned in the direction shown by the arrow in Fig. 7, the lugs 88 strike against the lugs 87 to prevent further rotation.

I claim:

1. Asignal light comprisingahousinghaving four sides facing in four directions, a lens in each side of the housing, a lamp in the housing registering with all of said lenses, an oscillating frame within the housing and disposed between the lamp and the lenses, colored panels carried by said frame, a pair of solenoids fixed within the housing, a rocker shaft adjacent to the solenoids, an armature for each solenoid operatively connected to the rocker shaft, an operative connecting means between the rocker shaft and oscillating frame for oscillating the frame to move different panels into register with the lenses, lower armatures for each solenoid, a radial pin upon each of the last named armatures and an arcuate track on the oscillating frame upon which each pin is arranged to ride said track having abrupt ends which the pins are adapted to abut when the solenoids are deenergized whereby the frame is held in fixed position.

2. A signal light comprising a housing having a plurality of sides facing in differ ent directions, a lens in each side of the housing, a lamp in the housing registering with all of said lenses, a frame mounted for oscillatory movement on a vertical axis within the housing and disposed between the lamp and the lenses, colored panels carried by said frame, a pair of solenoids, means for separately energizing said solenoids, means operable upon alternate energization of said solenoids, for oscillating said frame to move different panels into register with the lenses, a lower armature for each solenoid, a radial pin upon each said lower armatures and an arcuate track on said frame upon which each pin is arranged to ride said track having abrupt ends forming stops for said pins when the solenoids are de-energized.

In testimony that I claim the above, I have hereunto subscribed my name.

JEREMIAH KELLER. 

